Gates responds to Clinton letter.

On Monday, Under Secretary of Defense Eric Edelman sent a letter to Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY), rebuffing her requests for Pentagon briefings to Congress on the administration’s plans for redeployment. “Premature and public discussion of the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq reinforces enemy propaganda,” wrote Edelman. Yesterday, Clinton sent a new letter to Defense Secretary Robert Gates. In a new statement, Gates responds, but does not promise congressional briefings:

I have long been a staunch advocate of Congressional oversight, first at the CIA and now at the Defense Department. I have said on several occasions in recent months that I believe that Congressional debate on Iraq has been constructive and appropriate. I had not seen Senator Clinton’s reply to Ambassador Edelman’s letter until today. I am looking into the issues she raised and will respond to them early next week.

As ThinkProgress reported yesterday, Clinton and Sen. John Kerry (D-MA) plan to introduce legislation requiring the Pentagon to brief Congress on redeployment plans.